With every passing year, employers place more and more importance on the 'right' degree, even for entry-level positions, so it is little wonder that more school leavers than ever before are choosing to continue with Higher Education.

Since the UK government abolished means-tested maintenance grants in 1998 and introduced tuition fees soon afterwards, the cost of getting a degree has increased exponentially, with an alarming proportion of new graduates leaving university tens of thousands of pounds in debt. The future looks bleak for the current generation of graduates. The 'job for life' has become the stuff of legend, and state pensions are at risk of being phased out.

It's easy to put off getting your finances properly on track, especially if you're working full-time and managing to keep your head above water, but those loans and overdrafts that were so easy to get when you were a fresh-faced eighteen-year-old need to be dealt with now if you want to enjoy a decent lifestyle by the time you are middle-aged.

We've identified some of the key things you can do to get on the road to financial freedom as soon as possible.

Make a plan

List your short-term and long term life goals. Do you want to be able to afford a new car or invest in property? Start a business? Get married or have children? Having a rough idea of the direction you want your future to take will provide the framework on which to base many important decisions.

Kill your debts

This one is vital! As long as you owe people money, you will feel like they own you. If you have outstanding student loans, bad credit cards, unpaid bills or similar debts, ignoring them will only make them grow bigger, and if all you can afford to pay is the minimum charge every month, all you will be doing is paying off interest without ever repaying the original loan. It's important to break out of the cycle of debt, but it can also be a very daunting prospect, especially if you are being harassed by many creditors. If you can't find enough hours in the day to organise repaying your debts properly, or simply feel you don't know where to start, it's worth finding a personal debt management firm to help you get back into the black.

As long as you are in debt you will not be able to save any money, which brings us to:

Start Saving Now

We're not saying that you shouldn't spend money on consoles, new stereos and so on but at least make sure you put aside 10% of your salary in a savings account for use in future emergencies. We don't want to sound fatalistic, but there will always be future emergencies!

Cut Day to Day Expenditure

The internet offers hundreds of ways to save on all manner of products and services. There are price comparison websites, sites that collect discount voucher codes that you can use when ordering all manner of things online, from new PCs to take-away pizza. If you find a voucher online that saves you some money, put that money into your savings fund as well. Sites like MoneySavingExpert are dedicated to helping consumers claw back as much money as possible from the corporations.

Get Into Investing

As we can see from the current state of the economy, the banks don't always know what's best for your money. Does it seem fair to you that the banks make themselves richer using your money, yet annual interest on your savings is a few miserable percent? Once you have your emergency fund established, use a proportion of your savings budget to take a piece of the action yourself by investing in stocks and shares. Compared to leaving money in a bank account, they can give you an excellent return. You don't need to be a financial genius – being a successful investor is based on knowledge of current affairs, an eye for a bargain, an ability to be decisive and plenty of common sense.

Financial news giants Reuters and Bloomberg are mines of useful information, and the internet is filled with tools to allow you to trade for yourself, for little or no initial outlay.

Get a Good Accountant

A lot of people think it's only worth having an accountant once they've got loads of money, but even when you're just starting out with a business or investment portfolio, spending £100 a year on having a professional go over your figures is money well spent. They will be able to identify where you can reclaim tax and advise you on how to pay as little as possible whilst remaining within the law.

If you can get as many of these things into action by the time you reach thirty-five years of age, you will be well on your way to protecting yourself against a future of always being someone else's employee, and that non-existent state pension won't be so bad after all... so what are you waiting for? Get going!